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NATURE STUDY 



The Sky: 
Spring and Summer Nights 



BY 

LOUISE BROWN 

Special Worker, General Educational Committee 
National Board, Young Womens Christian Associations 



PAMPHLET 5 



NEW YORK 

THE WOMANS PRESS 

1920 



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Copyright 1920, by 

The National Board of the Young Womens Christian Associations 

of the United States of America 



APR 1719: 
©CU566951 



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To 

ALL WHO ARE ENLISTED 

UNDER THE SIGN OF VIRGO 



CONTENTS 

Section I 

A Word First 9 

Section ii 

Virgo, the Virgin ........ .11 

The Constellation that announces the coming of Spring. 
Section III 

Bootes, the Herdsman; Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown; 

Hercules, the Kneeler; Coma Berenices, the Hair of Berenice. 15 

The Northern Crown, and the Hair of Berenice are among 
the surprises of the summer sky. 
Section IV 

Leo, the Lion ......... 20 

A Royal Constellation. 
Section V 

Gemini, the Twins 24 

They suggest their name. 
Section VI 

Auriga, the Charioteer ....... 27 

A Winter Constellation that lingers in the evening sky un- 
til summer and hastens to appear again in the fall. 
Section VII 

Scorpius, the Scorpion ........ 30 

The Constellation that announces the summer. 
Section VIII 

Sagittarius, the Archer ........ 33 

The Archer aims his arrow at the heart of the Scorpion, 
but he never lets it fly. 
Section IX 

Cygnus, the Swan; Aquila, the Eagle; Lyra, the Lyre; Delphinus, 

the Dolphin 35 

The most beautiful of summer and fall Constellations. 
Section X 

Pegasus, the Winged Horse; Andromeda, the Chained Maiden; 

Perseus, the Champion ....... 39 

The most romantic Constellations. 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

Section XI 

Ursa Major, the Great Bear; Ursa Minor, the Little Bear; 

Cassiopeia, the Queen; Draco, the Dragon. ... 42 

Always visible in middle northern latitudes. 
Section XII 

The Stars the Night Through . . . . 47 

Lucky campers who can make the heavens their roof. 
Section XIII 

Telling Time by the Stars ....... 51 

Nature's own Time-piece. 
Section XIV 

The Twenty Brightest Stars 59 

Eleven of these can be seen in the evening in April! 
Section XV 

Pronunciation. . . ..... 60 

The names of stars are no harder to learn than the names 
of our human friends. 
Section XVI 

Further Observations ....... 61 

"He who knows the most is the rich and royal 

man." 



THE SKY: 
SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 



And hers shall be the breathing balm, 
And hers the silence and the calm 
Of mute insensate things. 

The stars of midnight shall be dear 

To her; and she shall lean her ear 

In many a secret place 

Where rivulets dance their wayward round, 

And beauty born of murmuring sound 

Shall pass inter her face. 

— Wordsworth. 

And if there be "no time" in our hurried and busy generation 
for a sense of the mystery and order of the stars, is not this itself 
one of the reasons why we should take time for them, and for 
the healing power of those silences to which they league their un- 
ceasing invitations? Our life, just now, is not too rich in im- 
agination, nor too deeply moved by the sense of reverence or the 
touch of wonder. 

— McKready: "A Beginner's Star-Book." 



SECTION I 

A WORD FIRST 
"Make Friendship with the Stars" 

The mild evenings of spring tempt us to linger out of doors 
after sunset, and when the warm nights of summer have 
come, fortunate is the person who can make the sky his roof 
for the season. This pamphlet is written for those who want 
the satisfaction of recognizing the stars such evenings, and 
the joy of understanding their behavior throughout spring 
and summer. If one determines to learn something of the 
sky every clear night, it is surprising how much he will 
know by the end of the summer and how much more worth 
while such knowledge will make the season. 

In the maps included in this pamphlet, only the bright 
stars and the more conspicuous star-figures are shown. If 
you do not know how to find north, read Section XI, first. 
Hold each map toward the sky, in the direction indicated 
for the time chosen, flash a light on the map, and then look 
for a duplicate in the sky. If the hour or month chosen is 
later than that specified, look further west for the star- 
figure; if earlier, look further east. When twenty star-figures 
have been found, you will begin to feel at home in the sky. 
It is an especial joy after a few cloudy nights, to see again 
one's friends in the sky, where they have been shining stead- 
fastly beyond the clouds all the time. 

As the fall approaches, w r e soon discover that we are going 
to lose our summer stars from the evening sky, and although 
we are glad to welcome the brilliant winter constellations 

9 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

in the east, we are a little sad to see our friends of the summer 
go. But we may enjoy the comforting knowledge that they 
will all greet us again another summer, and yet another, all 
our lives through. The stars are not friends of just one 
year, but life-time friends, that never fail the person who has 
chosen them for comrades. They are always where we 
expect to find them. 



10 



SECTION II 

VIRGO, THE VIRGIN 

It is no small part of the charm and interest of the constellations that 
they announce and prefigure the seasons. Spring, summer, autumn and 
winter — each has its characteristic stars, which keep step with the year. 

When, in an April or May night, the sedate Virgin glows amid her well- 
ordered stars, like an abbess surrounded by white-veiled nuns, how ex- 
quisitely the celestial mood responds to the brooding planet! No one who 
has not had the experience can imagine, or fully credit, the thrill of pleasure 
that comes to the lover of the stars with his earliest glimpse of the constella- 
tions that announce the morning of the year. 

— Serviss: "Astronomy with the Naked Eye." 

"Spring has come!" announces a lover of the birds. "I 
heard a bluebird this morning. " "Yes, spring has come," 
replies a lover of the stars. "I saw Spica in Virgo early in 
the evening." 

The stars as well as the birds and the flowers tell the com- 
ing of the Spring. As early as the first of March Spica 
rises about nine above the eastern horizon, but it is April before 
this beautiful bright star is high enough to attract attention 
in the early evening. There are no bright stars near. Only 
Arcturus in Bodies keeps it company in the eastern sky 
further to the north below the handle of the Big Dipper. 
The orange color of Arcturus is in marked contrast to the 
silvery whiteness of Spica. 

These two stars can be seen all summer, each month 
further to the west at the same hour, traveling together 
across the sky. By the first of August, Spica has nearly 

n 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

reached the western horizon at nine, and Arcturus is following, 
higher in the west. Arcturus lingers after Spica has set, 
and attracts attention in September after sunset low in the 
northwest, where it glows with a warm reddish light. When 
we see Arcturus following the sun to rest, we know that the 
summer has ended. 

Spica is in the constellation of Virgo, the Virgin. In 
China it is known as the * 'Frigid Maiden". The Virgin is 
drawn as a maiden with folded wings carrying a head of 
wheat in one hand, where Spica is found.* One cannot help 
feeling an interest in this winged maiden of the sky whose 
advent above the eastern horizon has been associated with 
the season of seed-time in many lands in every age. One 
myth relates that the Virgin once lived on earth and in the 
Golden Age ruled over men as the Goddess of Justice. But 
in the ages that followed, men, led by the lure of gold, forgot, 
Justice and the gods and goddesses left the earth. Justice, 
however, was among the last to leave, but in the Age of 
Iron — the terrible Age of War — men were of such changed 
spirit that even she could no longer endure them. 

Justice, loathing that race of men, 

Winged her flight to heaven; and fixed 

Her station in that region 

Where still by night is seen 

The Virgin goddess near to bright Bootes. 

— Akatus. 

Some believe that this Goddess of Justice will yet return 
to earth, in response to the prayers and labor of many women 
of many nations, to end the Rule of Iron and reign forever 
over an obedient happy people. 



* See figure on cover. 

12 



VIRGO,* THE VIRGIN 



Spica is preceded by a group of stars which form a large V. 
With Spica this group makes a V. The hollow formed by a 
curved line connecting the stars of the V is known as the 
"Retreat of the Howling Dog." The planet Mars is in the 
constellation of Virgo during April, May, June and July, 
1920. It is easily recognized by its red color. 



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VIRGO, THE VIRGIN. 

Look for Virgo, between April 1, and August 1. 

May 1, 9 p.m. in the southeast. 
July 1, 9 p.m. in the southwest. 



Chart 1 



SECTION III 

Bootes, the Herdsman; Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown; 
Hercules, the Kneeler; Coma Berenices, the Hair of Berenice 

As the earth puts on its earliest verdure the mild light of Virgo appears 

in the east, and silvery Spica beams in placid rivalry with the gold-orange 

radiance of Arcturus hanging below the great handle of the Dipper, between 

the sheen of Berenice's Hair and the linked pearls of the Northern Crown. 

— Serviss: ''Astronomy with the Naked Eye." 

It is still winter when Arcturus rising at ten the first of 
February suggests the Spring a month before Spica has 
really announced its coming. Throughout May, Arcturus 
is high in the east in the early evening, and leads the pro- 
cession of spring and summer stars across the sky. In the 
fall, it is conspicuous in the northwest, after sunset. It is 
always easily found by following the curving handle of the 
Big Dipper. It forms a conspicuous kite-shaped figure with 
a group of five stars above. Arcturus is in the constellation 
of Bootes, the Herdsman, or Bear Driver, who with his Hunt- 
ing Dogs held by a leash chases the Bears around the Pole. 

At the left of Bootes, is Corona Borealis the Northern 
Crown, appropriately so-named because it is easy to see the 
resemblance of its star-figure to a crown. Six faint stars and 
one bright one form almost a circle. The bright star is the 
gem of the crown, and the fainter ones, the pearls that adorn 
it. This group is so startlingly lovely through an opera 
glass that one exclaims with delight on first discovering it. 

Further still to the left is a large butterfly-shaped group 
in the constellation of Hercules. This is a difficult group 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

to find, because it contains no very bright stars and no very 
conspicuous figure, but we like to identify the constellation 
that bears the name of such a famous character. Hercules 
stands on his head in our sky with one foot on the head of 
the Dragon. One star marks the head, two the shoulders 
(the butterfly's left wing), two the belt (the body of the 
butterfly), and two crooked lines of stars his bent knees. 
From his posture he has been called "The Man upon his 
Knees.' ' 

On the other side of Bootes from Corona Borealis, is one of 
the surprises of the sky. It is easily seen without an opera 
glass, a bit of cloud apparently, caught and fixed among the 
stars. But with an opera glass, the "cloud" spreads into a 
beautiful web, spangled with stars. This star-cluster is in 
the constellation Coma Berenices or Berenice's Hair. To 
find it, start with the Big Dipper, and instead of following 
the curving row of stars in the handle to Arcturus, turn a 
sharp corner towards Virgo. The map shows its position 
in relation to Spica, Arcturus and Regulus. It is especially 
conspicuous when there is no moonlight to dim its pale lus- 
ter. 

There is a story dating from the third century B.C. con- 
nected with this star-cluster. Berenice was Queen in Egypt. 
She had sacrificed her hair as a thank-offering for one of her 
husband's victories. The hair was kept in one of the temples 
but one day it was found missing. The guardian of the 
temple, to escape blame, told her that Jove had placed it 
in the sky, and to prove his statement, he showed her this 
cluster which has since been known as Berenice's hair. When 
you look at it, remember the ancient queen who gazed at it 

16 



BOOTES, THE HERDSMAN 



so many Genturies ago. But you have an advantage over her, 
for you can see with your glass that it is only a cluster of 
stars, which is more than ever she knew about it. 



17 




BOOTES, THE HERDSMAN; CORONA, BOREALIS, THE NORTHERN 
CROWN; HERCULES, THE KNEELER. 

Look for these between April 1 and October 1. 

May 1, 9 p.m. Bootes high in the east, Hercules lower toward the north- 
east; Corona between Bootes and Hercules. 

July 1, 9 p.m. Corona and Hercules almost overhead; Bootes further 
west. 



September 1, 9 p.m. Bootes low north of west; Corona and Hercules 
higher in the west. 



Chart 2 
18 



' 


. . a , • 


• 

. The 
Big Dipper / 

I 


>T Regulus 

■ 




—. > /•:';. Coma Berenices 


Arcturus^ 


1 




S P ,ca 


• 




H *-.'.' 1 " ■ 


■ 



Showing how to find Coma Berenices from A returns, 
from Spica, or from the Big Dipper. 



Chart 3 



t* 



SECTION IV 

LEO, THE LION 

In pride the Lion lifts his mane, 
To see his British brothers reign 
As stars below. 

— Edward Young. 

It is easy to trace the form of a lion in the stars of this 
constellation. Five stars in a curving row form a group 
called the Sickle from its shape. A bright star, Regulus, is 
in the handle. The Sickle is in the Lion's head and his tail 
is indicated by three stars in a right triangle. Leo precedes 
Virgo. It is high in the south at 9 p.m. April first, when 
Virgo is just above the eastern horizon. It is seen further 
west at the same hour in May and June, and is near the 
western horizon by the first of July. Regulus is ranked 
among the twenty brightest stars, but it is the least bright 
of the twenty. Still, when there is no moon or bright planet 
near to dim its light, it proves worthy of its name "The 
little King". 

During the spring and summer of 1920 both Jupiter and 
Saturn will be in Leo. Jupiter, the brighter of the two, at 
the right of Regulus and Saturn at the left. In 1921 both 
of these planets will be nearer the boundary line between 
Leo and Virgo, and by 1922, they will have parted company, 
Jupiter having advanced into Virgo, while Saturn lingers in 
Leo for another summer. When you look at these planets, 
remember that they are very much nearer us than the stars 
among which they appear. The stars are only a background 



LEO, THE LION 



for them. Jupiter's distance from the earth varies approx- 
imately from 390 million to 580 million miles, and Saturn's 
from 774 million to 1,028 million, whereas the nearest star 
is more than 25 millions of millions of miles away. To make 
these staggering numbers have more meaning, if you should 
travel on a beam of light, which goes about 11 million miles 
in one minute, you could reach Jupiter when it is nearest in 
a little over half an hour, but it would take you over four 
years to reach the nearest star. Remember, too, that the 
telescope proves that planets do not manufacture their own 
light. They are dark bodies, visible to us only because of 
the sunlight that illumines them. Stars, however, are suns; 
immense masses of hot material, so hot that it is luminous. 
Our earth could not be seen from any star, even with tele- 
scopes as powerful as the best of ours. Our sun would look 
like only a dim star when seen from the nearest star, and from 
many stars it would be quite invisible, for it is not a large 
star at all, but only of average size or less. The history of 
the discovery of these facts is a fascinating one, but it must 
be left for some winter evening when you prefer to read by 
the fireside instead of watching the sky outside. 



21 




LEO, THE LION. 
Look for Leo between February 1 and July 1. 
April 1, 9 p.m. high in the south between Gemini and Virgo. 
June l t 9 p.m. in the southwest. 
July 1, 9 p.m. low in the west. 

Chart 4 



12 




LEO, THE LION. 
Showing how the Sickle forms the head of the Lion. 

Chart 5 



*I 



SECTION V 

GEMINI, THE TWINS 

And after three months, we departed in a ship of Alexandria, which had 
wintered in the isle, whose sign was Castor and Pollux 

Acts XXVIII : 11. 

Back comes the chief in triumph 

Who in the hour of fight 
Hath seen the Great Twin Brethren 

In harness on his right. 
Safe comes the ship to haven 

Through billows and through gales, 
If once the Great Twin Brethren 

Sit shining on the sails. 

— Macaulay: "Lays of Ancient Rome." 

Castor and Pollux have always been considered the sailors' 
stars. It is therefore not strange that the ship that carried 
Paul away from Malta on his journey to Rome bore the 
sign of these stars. They seem also to have been the sol- 
diers' stars for they were known in Rome as the "Great 
White Brethren* ' who appeared on white horses to give 
courage in battle. 

Castor and Pollux are so bright and so near together that 
it is quite natural that the name Gemini, the Twins, should 
have been given to the constellation containing the two. 
They are not perfect twins, however, for Pollux is a little 
brighter than Castor. Moreover they are not really near 
each other at all, although apparently side by side in the 
sky. Castor is more than twice as far from us as Pollux. 
If we should travel on a beam of light, eleven million miles 
every minute, it would take us fifty-one years to reach 

24 



GEMINI, THE TWINS 



Pollux, and when we arrived, we should find Castor far in 
the distance. We should have to journey sixty-five years 
more to reach that star, which from the earth seemed so 
near to its twin. 

Castor and Pollux are in the heads of the Twins. Rows of 
faint stars nearly parallel to the line joining Castor and Pollux 
mark the knees and the feet. Gemini is high in the west in 
April and is setting in the northwest at nine the first of June. 



25 




GEMINI, THE TWINS. 
Look for Gemini between December 1 and June 1. 
January 1, 9 p.m. high in the east 
April 1, 9 p.m. high in the west 
June 1, 9 p.m. low in the aorthwest. 

Chart * 



26 



SECTION VI 

AURIGA, THE CHARIOTEER 

And the shining daffodil dies, and the Charioteer 
And starry Gemini hang like glorious crowns 
Over Orion s grave low down in the west. 

— Tennyson: "The Princess." 

Auriga is one of the last of the winter constellations to 
disappear from the evening sky. When Virgo is in the east, 
announcing the Spring, Orion with the Dogs is going to his 
grave in the west. By the first of May, only the Charioteer 
and the starry Gemini are left of the glorious constellations 
that make the winter sky so brilliant. The sky at 9 p.m. 
in early April before the winter stars have set is the most 
brilliant of the year. Eleven of the twenty brightest stars 
can be seen: Rigel, Betelgeuze, Aldebaran, Sirius and 
Procyon of the distinctively winter stars are in the west, 
with Capella, Pollux, and Regulus following, while in the 
east, Spica, Arcturus and Vega — the stars of spring — are 
appearing, a wonderful array. 

The Charioteer is a man carrying a young goat on his 
shoulder. The creamy-white star, Capella — the Goat Star — 
is in the heart of the Goat. Near it are three faint stars 
which form a conspicuous small triangle known as the "kids'*. 
Capella with four other bright stars forms a large five-sided 
figure. One star in this group, in the lower left hand corner, 
is in one of the horns of the Bull. The red eye of the Bull, 
Aldebaran, can still be seen in early April, glowering below 
Capella in the northwest. There are only two stars visible 

rr. 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

in this latitude that are brighter than Capella — Sirius, the 
brightest of all stars, a winter star, and Vega, a rival of 
Capella in the summer. Capella disappears from the evening 
sky in June but may be greeted again early in September. 
However, there is not one clear night in the year when it 
cannot be seen if one is willing to look for it after midnight 
in July, and late in the evening in August. All through the 
fall, winter, and spring, its steady light shines in marked con- 
trast to the more scintillating flashes or warmer rays of other 
brilliant stars. In January, it is overhead at nine, and easily 
seen and recognized even in cities for there is no other very 
bright star near it. 



28 




AURIGA, THE CHARIOTEER 
Look for Auriga between October 1 and June 1. 
October 1, 9 p.m. low in the northeast. 
January 1, 9 p.m. almost overhead. 
April 1, 9 p.m. in the northwest. 

Chart 7 



29 



SECTION VII 

SCORPIUS, THE SCORPION 

There is nothing more absolutely common to all men than the influence 
of the stars. No one ever gazed up at them without feeling a change come 
over his spirit. Truly "they separate between him and what he touches." 
They free him from the bondage of time and space. There is no trouble 
that they cannot assuage. And there is no time like the summer for becom- 
ing intimate with them. One who has been touched by the magic of their 
love could lie all the night long on a bed of pine-needles and fill his soul 
with their beauty. The march of red Antares and his glittering retinue 
across the meridian while the earth sleeps in solstitial calm — who can 
describe that pageant? 

— Serviss: "Round the Year with the Stars." 

Scorpius is as characteristic of summer as Orion of winter. 
The two are never seen in the sky at the same time, quite 
properly, since it is the Scorpion that stung the heel of Orion 
and caused his death. The Scorpion lifts his head above 
the southeastern horizon about nine p.m. the first of 
June and by July his heart, marked by the red Antares, is 
very conspicuous in the south, with the tail trailing eastward 
just above the horizon. Antares is the reddest of the stars 
visible without a telescope, and the fact that it is also very 
bright, ranking seventeen in the list of twenty brightest, 
makes it easy to identify it. The Chinese named it the 
"Great Fire".. The word Antares means "like Mars", the 
red planet. 

Antares is a lovely sight through a telescope for it has a 
small bright green companion. They are like two gems, a 
large ruby and a small emerald, but there are really no jewels 

30 



SCORPIUS, THE SCORPION 



equal to the stars in beauty and brilliancy. Since every 
star is a sun, the inhabitants of planets near Antares, if 
such there are, would have two suns in the sky, one fiery 
red and the other vivid green. It is hard to imagine what 
the effect of such contrasted lights on the landscape would 
be. As a rule, stars that seem close together in the sky are 
really far apart, but there are many double stars like Antares 
which consist of two suns really close enough to influence 
each other. Careful observations show that the two are 
moving about a point between them in accord with the law 
of gravitation. 



31 




SCORPIUS, THE SCORPION. 

Look for Scorpius between June 1 and September 1. 

July 1, 9 p.m. low in the south. 
August 1, 9 p.m. low in the southwest. 

Chart 8 



32 



SECTION VIII 

SAGITTARIUS, THE ARCHER 

Midst golden stars he stands resplendent now 
And thrusts the Scorpion with his bended bow. 

— Ovid. 

It is not until July that the Archer is seen at nine o'clock 
in the southeast following the Scorpion across the sky. Al- 
though it contains no very bright stars, it has a conspicuous 
group of four which make the body of the Archer, and three 
which form a distinct bow, with one clearly indicating the 
arrow aimed at the heart of the Scorpion. The four stars 
in the body, the top star in the bow, and one star above and 
to the right of the bow, make a group shaped like a dipper 
with the bowl opening down. It is called the Milk Dipper 
to distinguish it from the Big Dipper in the north. This 
name was suggested from its position near the Milky Way, 
from which it hangs with the handle in the Milky Way. 

The planet Mars will be in this constellation during the 
spring and summer of 1922. 



33 




SAGITTARIUS, THE ARCHER. 

Look for Sagittarius between July 1 and October 1. 
August 1, 9 p.m. low a little east of south. 
October 1, 9 p.m. low in the southwest. 

Chart 9 



34 



SECTION IX 

CYGNUS, THE SWAN; AQUILA, THE EAGLE; 
LYRA, THE LYRE; DELPHINUS, THE DOLPHIN 

I guess I'd sooner slog it where there's just a scent of pine, 

And over 'ead an 'eap of little stars. 

The lights of Charing Cross and Picadilly 

I'd swap 'em for the silver of the streams 

When the summer moon is lit, and the bats begin to flit 

And the dark earth dreams. 

— "Goin* Back." 

"An *eap of little stars" accompany these constellations 
for they are in the Milky Way where stars are thick. Cygnus 
is easily recognized by a group of stars in the shape of a Cross, 
with one bright one, Deneb, at the top. Lyra is identified 
by Vega, near the foot of the Cross, the brightest star in the 
summer sky. Near Vega are two faint stars forming a small 
triangle with Vega. Campers like to test their eye-sight on 
the more northern of the two. It takes a very good eye to 
see that this star is composed of two. Aquila on the other 
side of the Cross is readily distinguished by a straight line 
of three stars, the middle one, Altair, the brightest. Vega 
is the fourth brightest in the list of twenty brightest stars, 
being excelled only by two stars not visible north of lati- 
tude 37°, and by one winter star, Sirius. Altair is eleventh 
in the list, and Deneb the nineteenth. 

As we look from Vega across the Milky Way to Altair we 
realize how true it is that "one star differeth from another in 
glory". The glory of Altair is its scintillating bluish- white 
light. Because of this blueness and the brilliancy of its 

35 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

rays, it has been called the "Arc Light of the Sky". The 
glory of Altair on the other hand is its steady yellowish white 
light. Both these stars are classed as white stars, but it is 
easy to see a great difference in the quality of their light. 
This is also true of red stars. There are all shades of red, 
from the yellowish red or orange of Aldebaran to the deep red 
of Antares. No two are alike. 

East of Altair on the edge of the Milky Way is the little 
constellation, Dclphinus, readily identified by a small but 
remarkably conspicuous group of five faint stars shaped like 
a diamond with one point prolonged. This group is known 
as Job's Coffin. It repays observation through an opera 
glass. 

These constellations are in our sky for many months. 
Vega leads, rising at nine April first, followed by the Cross 
coming up sideways. It is not until July that all are seen 
in the early evening. The Cross and Vega are overhead 
early in September, at nine o'clock, and Altair is high in 
the South. They hesitate to leave us, lingering in the west 
long after the winter stars have risen above the eastern hori- 
zon. Vega and Altair are among the stars showing first 
after sunset in early January, in the northwest. As the sky 
grows dark, the Cross gleams bright between. It sets length- 
wise, still visible after Vega and Altair have gone. 

To see these constellations in all their glory and the Milky 
Way with its " 'eap of little stars", to the best advantage, 
choose a clear night in the late summer or early fall when 
there is no moonlight to lessen the radiance of the Milky 
Way. Find some open place where you can see all the sky. 
Trace the Milky Way from the northeastern horizon, over- 
head through Cygnus where it divides into two streams reach- 



CYGNUS; AQUILA; LYRA; DELPHINUS 

ing to the southwestern horizon. Apart from the Milky 
Way, the sky is black, and the stars few and easily counted, 
even with an opera glass to show the faint ones. The stars 
of the Cross gleam undimmed through the soft whiteness of 
the "River of the Sky". Vega is its brightest in the clear 
black sky, on one side of the Milky Way, and Altair gleams 
quietly just on the edge opposite. In the northwest, 
Arcturus is setting and in the southeast, Fomalhaut, the 
"lone star of the south", is rising. The Northern Crown 
with its "linked pearls" is still to be seen in the west. Who 
would not exchange the "lights of Charing Cross and Pica- 
dilly", or of New York, for such a sky? 



37 



Deneb 






\ 


kmbh 




\^ 






s 


x 


Ve.ga*)i 

r7 


Cygnus 


\- 


/ i 

*-* 

Lyra 








1 Hi5tM^^ 

I ' -■'-..■-■ ; 1 Is I119B 






Delphinus 


Altair 




s 






Aquila 







CYGNUS, THE SWAN; LYRA, THE LYRE; AQUILA, THE EAGLE; 
DELPHINUS, THE DOLPHIN. 

Look for these between June 1 and December 1. 

July 1, 9 p.m. Lyra high in the east; Aquila directly below; Cygnus 
between and further north; Delphinus at the right of Aquila. 

September 1, 9 p.m. Cygnus and Lyra almost overhead. Aquila and 
Delphinus lower in the south. 
November 1, 9 p.m. in the west. 

Chart 10 



38 



SECTION X 

PEGASUS, THE WINGED HORSE; 

ANDROMEDA, THE CHAINED MAIDEN; 

PERSEUS, THE CHAMPION 

I set thee 
High for a star in the heavens, a sign and a hope for the seamen 
Spreading thy long white arms all night in the heights of the ether. 
Hard by, thy sire and the hero, thy spouse, while near thee thy mother 
Sits in her ivory chair, as she plaits ambrosial tresses; 
All night long wilt thou shine. 

— Kingsley: "Andromeda." 

Andromeda shines all night in the late summer and fall. 
There are constellations more beautiful than these but none 
more romantic. Andromeda was the daughter of Cassiopeia, 
Queen of ^Ethiopia. Cassiopeia had boasted that she was 
more beautiful than the sea nymphs, and in revenge,Neptune, 
the God of the Sea, had sent a monster to ravage the coast. 
The oracle declared that the only way the kingdom could be 
saved was by the sacrifice of Andromeda to the sea monster. 
So she was chained to a rock to await her terrible fate. The 
monster was about to seize her when Perseus arrived, slew 
the beast, unchained the maiden, and carried her away with 
him on the winged horse Pegasus. Of course the two were 
afterward happily wedded, and after their deaths given a 
place in the heavens with the famous horse. 

There are no very brilliant stars in these constellations 
but each is recognized easily by a characteristic group of 
bright stars. Four in Pegasus make nearly a square, a very 
large one. The northeastern star in the Great Square of 

39 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

Pegasus is also in Andromeda. Two bright ones in line with 
this are also in Andromeda. These two with the Square 
make a group resembling a Dipper with a bowl much larger 
than that of the Big Dipper. In line with the row of stars 
in Andromeda, is a bright star in a curving line of stars 
known as the "Segment" in Perseus. This row forms an re- 
shaped figure with a star at one side. 

This last star, Algol, is especially interesting. Every two 
and three-quarters days, it becomes dim, remains dim for 
about three and one-half hours and then brightens again, 
repeating the process regularly. A dark star moving around 
Algol and partly eclipsing it has been found to be the cause 
of this change. Ordinarily Algol is a bright star, and com- 
pares favorably with the brightest star in the Segment, but 
at its dimmest, it is noticeably less bright and w r ould be classi- 
fied by anyone as a faint star. 

It is worth while to look at the stars in the Segment with 
an opera glass. The Milky Way goes through Perseus, and 
consequently the opera glass reveals many beautiful groups 
of stars not visible without a glass. Those near the brightest 
star of the Segment are particularly lovely. The opera glass 
will also help in finding the Great Nebula in Andromeda, 
although it can be found with the unaided eye. 

The Great Square of Pegasus, followed by Andromeda and 
Perseus, can be seen at nine o'clock by the first of August, 
but it is not until the fall that the three constellations are 
high enough to be seen to the best advantage. 



40 




PEGASUS, THE WINGED HORSE; ANDROMEDA, THE CHAINED 
MAIDEN; PERSEUS, THE CHAMPION. 

Look for these between August 15, and February 15. 

August 15, 9 p.m. low in the east and northeast. 

October 1, 9 p.m. Pegasus high in the southeast, 

Perseus low in the northeast, Andromeda between. 

January 1, 9 p.m. Perseus overhead, Pegasus low in the west. 
Chart 11 



41 



SECTION XI 

URSA MAJOR, THE GREAT BEAR; URSA MINOR, 

THE LITTLE BEAR; CASSIOPEIA, THE QUEEN; 

DRACO, THE DRAGON 

If utter darkness closed the day my son — 
But earth's dark forehead flings athwart the heavens 

Her shadow crown'd with stars — and yonder — out 
To northward — some that never set, but pass 

From sight and night to lose themselves in day. 

— Tennyson: "The Ancient Sage." 

The seven stars to light you 
Or the polar ray to right you. 

— Keats: "Robin Hood." 

The Big Dipper in Ursa Major, is without doubt the best 
known star-figure in the heavens. It can be seen at any time 
of night all through the year in the latitude of New York or 
further north. Every camper needs to know this Dipper 
because it will always tell him what direction is north. The 
two stars at the end of the bow r l furthest from the handle 
point unfailingly to the North Star. Facing this star, the 
camper knows that he is facing north, his right hand extended 
points east, his left hand, west. A keen eye soon discovers 
that the North Star is not exactly in line with the pointers, 
but it is the only bright star in that direction, and no one 
ever has the least difficulty in finding it if he has first found 
the pointers. It is thrilling to think of all the travelers of 
different races who have throughout the centuries of human 
history gazed upon this Dipper and found their way by its 
guidance. Greek sailors and Indian tribes, and our own fugi- 
tive slaves, have known how to find north by the stars. 

42 



URSA MAJOR; URSA MINOR; CASSIOPEIA; DRACO 

Six of the stars of the Big Dipper are about equally bright, 
ranking among the stars second in brightness to the twenty 
brightest; but the one joining the bowl with the handle 
spoils the perfection of the group as it is distinctly less bright. 
It is considered by some a test of a good eye to see a faint 
star, Alcor, near the star, Mizar, at the bend of the handle. 
It is not much of a test however, as average eyes can easily 
see it. These two stars are known as the Horse and the Rider. 

Although the Big Dipper is generally well known, few 
know the Little Dipper in Ursa Minor. The North Star, 
Polaris or Pole Star, is at the end of the handle. Two bright 
stars in a line parallel to a line joining the second and third 
in the handle of the Big Dipper are in the bowl of the Little 
Dipper. These are known as the guardians of the Pole. 
When these are found, it is easy to finish the figure. Two 
faint ones complete the bowl and two other faint ones con- 
nect the bowl with the North Star at the end of the handle. 
The Little Dipper hangs from the North Star and is always 
turned just the opposite way from the Big Dipper. 

On the other side of the North Star from the Big Dipper is 
a zig-zag row of bright stars shaped like a large W. These 
are in Cassiopeia. At 9 p.m., May 1, the Big Dipper is 
almost overhead and the W of Cassiopeia is very low near 
the northern horizon. During the summer, the Big Dipper 
is found at the same hour, lower towards the northwest, 
handle up, at the left of the North Star and the W on the 
other side at the right. 

Between the two Dippers winds the Dragon, Draco. His 
head is easily recognized by two bright stars, which form 
with two faint ones near, a conspicuous four-sided group. It 

43 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

is always between Vega and the bowl of the Little Dipper. 
One foot of Hercules rests on the head of the Dragon. 

These constellations are in the sky in the day as well as 
at night, although invisible in the diffused sunlight. As 
Tennyson says, they never set but "pass from sight and night 
to lose themselves in day." Other constellations set. The 
camper will enjoy watching the sky, one of the nights when he 
is sleeping in the open, to prove the poet correct. Perhaps 
he will give himself the task of discovering why some con- 
stellations never set in our sky and just what is meant by 
"our sky". How is it further north? And what is the 
sky like further south, in South Africa for instance? Why 
should it be different? The first men to discover that the 
southern skies are different from our northern ones came 
back with marvellous stories of the strange new heavens 
they had seen: the Southern Cross, the brilliant Canopus, 
and the beautiful Clouds of Magellan. But it is beyond 
the scope of this pamphlet to describe the wonders of the 
southern firmament, or to explain the behavior of the sky 
when we travel. We must leave that for the long winter 
evenings when books by the fireside rival the attractions of 
the cold out-of-doors. 



44 







7T n* < 

Overhead 


• 

Ursa / 
Major i* 




Draco 


k 


/ 


/ \ Head / 


The"* / 
Pointers 


/ 


Ursa \ . ^ 
Minor 7 

• Polaris 
NorttTstar 


July 1 


. 9p 


•/ 

Cassiopeia 

. m. Northern Horizon 



URSA MAJOR, THE BIG BEAR; URSA MINOR, THE LITTLE BEAR; 
CASSIOPEIA, THE QUEEN; DRACO, THE DRAGON. 

These are visible all the year in the latitude of New York or further north. 
May 1, 9 p.m. Ursa Major almost overhead, bowl of Big Dipper 
opening downwards; bowl of Little Dipper in Ursa Minor at the 
right of the North Star; Cassiopeia low in the north; head of Draco 
in the northeast. 

(Continued on next Page) 
Chart 12 

45 



July 1, 9 p.m. Ursa Major high in the northwest, handle of Big 
Dipper up; bowl of Little Dipper above the North Star; head of 
Draco nearly overhead; Cassiopeia, low a little east of north. 

September 1, 9 p.m. Ursa Major low in the northwest; bowl of Little 
Dipper at left of North Star; Cassiopeia at right of North Star; 
head of Draco above bowl of Little Dipper. 

Chart 12 



If 


▼or 


firo 


CO 


^ 












■ ' 




/ 


9 j_ ..i : M 






. - ■ <fc ■ 




> 

- -y '-, 

i % 


-r 


A' iirsti 

major y I 






\f- 




•"■V^V^- 


\ V 


\4 Y 


j£^§3^ : 






_ )c/ * 




. . ■' "■'.'' . 


/l 


* 


r— -n^ ■ 












V\' 


/ 




I,«?0 r 








:?■■>■'■:■: 




V 


=U • 


V" 0r 




c tf 






v<x 


*<: 


9" 




c 


^ c 






■"'■' 


. 


. 


▼I 







URSA MAJOR, THE GREAT BEAR. 

Showing how the Big Dipper fits into the form of the Great Bear. 



Chart 13 



SECTION XII 

THE STARS THE NIGHT THROUGH 

The stars of midnight shall be dear 

To her 

— Wordsworth. 

"You are different afterwards", explains a camper who 
has been called upon to defend the growing fashion of sleep- 
ing in the open. "It's not the same inside a tent. No, 
perhaps we don't sleep much, not the first night anyway, 
but we rest. There's nothing that rests one quite so much 
as just lying on the pine needles and watching the stars. 
No, we don't talk much. There's something about it that 
makes one want to be quiet. I often sleep out alone back of 
my tent. Afraid? Oh no. There's nothing to be afraid of. 
You will like being alone after you have tried it. The stars 
will keep you company. There's a red one I watch in the 
west until it's gone down back of the pines. It's lovely 
glowing through the pine needles. A very bright one over- 
head flashes colors like a diamond. The other is more like 
an opal." Lucky campers who have discovered that there 
are ways to rest without sleep, and that solitude does not 
mean loneliness! t 

The star overhead at nine o'clock in early August that 
"flashes color like a diamond," is Vega, and the red one high 
in the west is Arcturus. Between them is the splendid North- 
ern Crown. East of Vega is the Great Cross and lower, just 
above the northeastern horizon, is the Great Square of Pega- 

47 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

sus. Antares glows deep red in the southwest, in the Scor- 
pion, and the Archer follows in the south with his bow and 
arrow. Above the Archer, just below the foot of the Cross 
is Altair easily recognized by the faint star on each side. The 
Big Dipper is west of north, bowl down, handle up, and the 
Great W in Cassiopeia is low on the opposite side of the North 
Star from the Big Dipper. 

If the camper notices where these star-figures are in 
reference to objects on the horizon, he will soon make a great 
discovery. He will see the whole sky is apparently moving, 
carrying the western stars below the horizon and bringing 
up new ones in the east all night. It is a thrilling experience 
to watch the sky a night through. By eleven Arcturus is 
near the northwestern horizon and Antares is already setting. 
A bright star has appeared in the southeast, the "Lone Star/' 
Fomalhaut, so called because there are no conspicuous stars 
near. Fomalhaut is one of the sailors' stars for it shows the 
way to the south. Serviss describes it as a "distant watch- 
fire gleaming in the midst of a lonely prairie." Beyond 
Pegasus, Andromeda has risen with its famous nebula, and 
Perseus is following low in the northeast. It will soon be 
noticed that the Dippers are not setting. The Big Dipper 
is swinging around the North Star and is now nearer the 
northern horizon while the W of Cassiopeia is higher than it 
was at nine o'clock on the other side of the North Star. 
There is evidently room for the Dippers to make their circuit 
without going below the horizon. 

If the night is moonless and therefore dark, as well as clear, 
the Milky Way adds greatly to the splendor of the scene. 
The irregularity of this luminous stream of stars is a part of 
its beauty. The camper should look at different regions 

48 - 



THE STARS THE NIGHT THROUGH 

in it with his opera-glass. There is a beautiful double star- 
cluster half-way between Perseus and Cassiopeia. Any 
bright star is still more beautiful through the opera glass, 
and the winding rows and groups formed by faint stars not 
visible without the glass are fascinating. 

By one o'clock in the morning Arcturus has gone, and the 
great Goat Star, Capella, has appeared in the northeast 
beyond Perseus. By three the stars of winter are coming 
into view although it is only midsummer. The red Aide- 
baran in the eye of Taurus, the Bull, has risen in the east 
with the beautiful star-cluster, the Pleiades. The camper 
will want to test his eyesight on the Pleiades. Good eyes 
see six and exceptional eyes see many more. This group 
should also be examined with an opera-glass. Soon Orion, 
the most characteristic of winter constellations, has followed 
Taurus above the eastern horizon, with the Heavenly Twins 
further north. If the ambitious observer, who has begun 
to get acquainted with the stars in summer, cannot wait 
until winter has brought other stars into view, he has only 
to camp out one night, and watch the sky turn, bringing up 
towards morning all the stars that will make the sky brilliant 
in December and January in the early evening. 

Is the sky really turning? So people naturally thought, 
when they began to think about it at all. The sky was called 
the Celestial Sphere, on the inner surface of which all the 
heavenly bodies seem to be situated. By its daily motion, 
it was supposed to carry every heavenly body — sun, moon, 
stars and all — around the earth every twenty-four hours. 
But the fact that the nearest star is more than 25 millions 
of millions of miles from us, and that other stars are incon- 
ceivably fulrther off than this, means that the stars would 

49 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

have to travel at impossible speeds to get around and back 
in place in twenty-four hours. Moreover the more distant 
ones would have to travel faster to get back in the same rela- 
tive positions with the others. It becomes therefore more 
easy to believe that the millions of stars are not moving 
around the earth at all, but that it is our own little earth 
which by its rotation causes the celestial sphere to seem 
to turn carrying the stars across from east to west as we 
watch through the night, and bringing up, in due time, the 
sun. 

Still it is difficult to believe that this earth which seems so 
big and solid can really be moving. Thoughtful people 
were not ready to believe it when Copernicus, a Polish as- 
tronomer, suggested it in the middle of the sixteenth century, 
or later, in the next century, when Galileo, an Italian,* 
presented convincing arguments to prove that the earth does 
indeed move. Shortly after the end of Galileo's life, however 
the fact of the earth's rotation was established. 

Steadily, noiselessly, whether we sleep or wake, the earth 
turns round, holding us firmly with its powerful gravitation, 
quite unaware of what is happening, unless perchance we 
are watching the sky as we are this August night. 



*Read the fascinating account of the life of Galileo in Pioneers of 
Science by Sir Oliver Lodge. 

50 



SECTION XIII 

TELLING TIME BY THE STARS 

He whose roof is heaven, who has no other cover, over whom the stars 
continually rise and set in one and the same course, makes the beginnings 
of his affairs and his knowledge of time depend upon them. 

— Al Biruni, 1000 A.D. 

The camper who has made heaven his roof discovers that 
it is an easy matter to tell the time of night by means of the 
stars. If it is mid-summer, he knows that at nine o'clock, 
the Big Dipper is west of the North Star, handle up and bowl 
down, with the Pointers almost directly at the left of the 
North Star. As the hours pass, it swings around, until at 
three o'clock in the morning, it is under the North Star, low, 
just above the horizon. He knows that it completes its 
circuit in the daytime, and will be back the next night, west 
of the North Star again. If he wants to know the hour any- 
time during the night, he must imagine the great circle 
through which one of the Pointers swings. In six hours, 
the star moves through one-quarter of the whole circle. 
So if he remembers where the star was at nine o'clock he 
can easily tell from its position how many hours have passed 
since. He will notice two great differences between the star 
clock and our house clocks. It takes the hour hand of the 
star clock twenty-four hours instead of twelve to go around, 
and it goes in the opposite direction. 

Any star-figure can be used. Is the Northern Cross over- 
head? It is about eleven. Is the belt of Orion above 

51 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

the eastern horizon? It is three in the morning. With a 
little practice, one becomes quite an expert. 

After a few weeks however, the time-piece has changed. 
At nine o'clock, the Pointers are not at the left of the North 
Star but lower, and the Cross is overhead earlier in the even- 
ing. In November, the Big Dipper is underneath the North 
Star at nine. In February at the right, handle down, and 
in May high above. But each night it moves about the 
North Star and is back in twenty-four hours in nearly the 
same position as the night before. The fact that it is steadily 
gaining time does not become noticeable, without very careful 
observations, for several nights. Therefore, if we are familiar 
with the position of the Dipper at one hour every night, we 
can tell the time from its position later throughout that 
night. For example, if the month is May, and awakening 
in the night, I notice that the Pointers are at the left of the 
North Star, I know that it is about three o'clock, for at nine 
they are above the North Star, and since they have moved 
one-quarter of the entire way around, six hours have elapsed. 

If we are not using the Big Dipper it is important to know 
that every night, a given constellation rises about four 
minutes earlier than the night before, and hence in a month 
it is rising two hours earlier. The sky August 1 at 9 p.m. is 
the same as the sky September 1 at 7 p.m. The sky August 1 
at 3 a.m. is the same as the sky December 1 at 7 p.m. or Jan- 
uary 1 at 5 p.m. Anyone who is familiar with the constellations 
therefore, knows the time of night when he sees which are 
rising. If on the first of October, I see the Sickle of Leo in 
the northeast, I know that it is about three o'clock. If the 
Sickle has not risen, but Orion is appearing in the east, it is 

52 



TELLING TIME BY THE STARS 



only eleven. If Orion is fairly high, and the Dog Stars just 
rising, it is one o'clock. In the spring, it will be the stars of 
summer that can be seen rising as the night passes. Many 
a sleepless person has found rest watching the silent pro- 
cession of stars through the night. 

"One has a fine sense of companionship with the stars 
when he has secured this kind of acquaintance with them — 
when on looking out of the window at any hour of the night, 
he can see a familiar face twinkling as if in friendly recogni- 
tion of the fact that he must know it is due at that hour and 
is expecting to see it," writes Martha Evans Martin in The 
Friendly Stars. 

But why do we not see the same stars every evening, 
summer and winter? Naturally this question was asked and 
answered although incorrectly, early in human history. 
If we watch the sky carefully for a few months, we shall 
see what is happening. 

Let us begin in August. Then Scorpius is conspicuous in 
the south. Week by week, we find it further west at the 
same hour,until by November it is lost in the sunlight. The 
sun is in Scorpius,we would say, and that is why the stars of 
Scorpius cannot be seen. They are in the sky in the day- 
time, but the bright sunlight hides them and they set with 
the sun. If there should be an eclipse of the sun, we should 
see them near the sun. Continuing to watch in the same 
way, we find Sagittarius following Scorpius, until by Decem- 
ber, the sun has entered Sagittarius and the Sagittarius stars 
can no longer be seen. Thus we should discover that the 
sun apparently travels around the earth once a year. We 
cannot see the constellation it is in, although it is in the sky 

53 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

all day, but at night we see rising whatever constellation is 
in the opposite part of the heavens. As Scorpius sets with the 
sun in November, Taurus, the Bull, begins to appear in the 
northeast. When we say "the sun enters a constellation,' ' 
we must remember that the sun is really very much nearer 
us than the stars, and therefore "enters " a constellation 
only in the sense of being seen in the same 
part of the sky as that constellation. The constellations 
from the background against which the sun is seen, apparent- 
ly passing from one to the other. We shall see presently 
that the sun does not really move around the earth, but it 
was quite naturally supposed to do so by those early observers 
who first tried to explain the behavior of the stars. 

The part of the sky apparently traversed by the sun during 
the year was divided into twelve constellations, one for each 
month. Great importance was attached to these constella- 
tions, for not only the sun, but the moon and the planets 
are always found in them. A little rhyme makes it easy to 
remember at least their English names. 

The Ram, the Bull, the Heavenly Twins, 
And next the Crab, the Lion shines, 

The Virgin and the Scales, 
The Scorpion, Archer, and He-Goat, 
The Man that bears the watering pot, 

And Fish with glittering tails. 

One who has been observing the sky through the spring 
and summer knows at least six of these. Since most of these 
constellations are animals, they are known as the constella- 
tions of the Zodiac (Zo meaning animal) . The Zodiac is the 
belt of the sky in which the planets are always found. Old 
mythological figures and signs are often used in designs of 

54 



TELLING TIME BY THE STARS 



the Zodiac in almanacs, diaries, etc. One such design may 
be seen on the floor of the Boston Public Library, near the 
entrance. It is interesting to pick out the Lion, the Heaven- 
ly Twins, and all the famous twelve characters. 

However, the sun does not revolve around the earth from 
one constellation to another, as it appears to do. At the 
same time that the twenty-four hour apparent motion of the 
stars around the earth was proved to be due to the rotation 
of the earth on its axis, the yearly procession of the stars 
was proved to be due to the revolution of the earth about 
the sun. How this makes the sun seem to move around the 
earth, and different stars come into the evening sky from 
night to night, can easily be shown by a little experiment. 
Let a circle of people represent stars. Near the center of 
the circle, put a lamp for the sun. Let a girl representing the 
earth walk around this lamp, stopping occasionally to notice 
what stars she sees at night. In one position, she cannot see 
the stars back of the lamp, for the lamp hides them. If it is 
November these are the stars of Scorpius. But as she turns her 
back on the lamp (rotates) it is night, and she can see the 
stars in the opposite part of the circle, the Taurus stars. 
As she revolves around the sun, she sees the sun among 
different stars, hiding them, and at night she sees new stars. 
When she is half way round the sun, the sun is in Taurus, 
hiding those stars, and Scorpius opposite is seen at night. 
The stars in the direction of the earth's axis, in the ceiling 
in our illustration, are visible all the year. Thus it becomes 
clear that the motion of the earth about the sun explains 
why the constellations visible in the evening are different 
in different seasons.* 

* See Sir Robert Ball's Starland, pp. 58-71, for further discussion of tbi« 
topic. 

55 



THE SKY: SPRING AND SUMMER NIGHTS 

One who has made friendship with the stars one year is 
always happy as the seasons pass when he sees his old friends 
coming back to the sky. He welcomes them just as joyously 
as he does the bluebird in March and the violets in April. 
They are even more certain to come with the season for the 
bluebird may be driven to another home and the violets may 
be uprooted, but no man can rob the sky of its splendors. 
The laws governing its behavior are independent of human 
events and of human will. 

With what exact obedience you move, 

Now beneath, and now above; 
And, in your vast progressions, overlook 

The darkest night and closest nook! 

Some nights I see you in the gladsome East, 

Some others near the West; 
And when I cannot see, yet do you shine, 

And beat about your endless line. 

Settle and fix our hearts, that we may move, 

In order, peace, and love. 
And, taught obedience by thy whole creation, 

Become an humble, holy nation! 

— Henry Vaughan: "The Constellation." 



56 



Overhead 


^w^ 


I 


August 1 
3 p.m. 


August 1 
9 a.m. 


v ^ 


* — • 
August 1 
9 p.m. 


Pole Star 

August 2 
3 a-.ni. 


( 


^^ \ 


Northern Horizon 



Showing four different positions of the Big Dipper during twenty -four hours. 

Chart 14 



57 



Overhead 


■ May 1,9 p.m. 


B m 


) 




^* February 


1,9 pm. 


\r* Pole Star 
August I, 9 p.m. 


7 


November 1, g p.m. 


\ 




Northern Horizon 



Showing four different positions of the Big Dipper 
at the sams hour, during the year. 



Chart 15 



58 



SECTION XIV 

THE TWENTY BRIGHTEST STARS ARRANGED IN 
ORDER OF BRIGHTNESS 



Xame of Star 

1 Sirius 

2 Canopus 

3 Alpha of Cen- 

taurus 

4 Vega 

5 Capella 

6 Arcturus 

7 Rigel 

8 Procyon 

9 Achernar 

10 Beta of Cen- 

tauries 

11 Altair 

12 Betelgeuze 

13 Alpha of Crux 

14 Aldebaran 

15 Po/Zw2r 

16 Spica 

17 Antares 

18 Fomalhaut 

19 -Dercefc 

20 Regulus 



Constellation 



Best Seen 



Canis Major, The Greater Dog Winter 
Carina, Keel of Ship Seen only in latitudes 

south of 37 ° 



Centaurus, The Centaur 

Lyra, The Lyre 
Auriga, The Charioteer 
Bootes, The Herdsman 
Orion, The Giant Hunter 
Cam's Minor, The Lesser Dog 
Eridanis, The River Po 



Centaurus, The Centaur 

Aquila, The Eagle 
Orion, The Giant Hunter 
Crux, The Cross 

Taw™*, The Bull 
Gemini, The Twins 
Virgo, The Virgin 
Scorpius, The Scorpion 
Piscis Australis, The Southern 

Fish 
Cygnus, The Swan 
Leo, The Lion 



Seen only in latitude 

south of 30 ° 
Summer and fall 
Winter 
Summer 
Winter 
Winter 
Seen only in latitudes 

south of 32 ° 

Seen only in latitudes 

south of 30 ° 
Summer and fall 
Winter 
Visible only in latitudes 

south of 28° 
Winter 

Winter and Spring 
Spring 
Summer 

Fall 

Summer and Fall 

Spring 



59 





SECTION XV 


] 


PRONUNCIATION 


Constellations 




Stars 


Vir'-go 




Spl'-ca 


Bo-o'-tes 




Arc-tu'-rus 


Co-ro'-na 




Gem-ma 


Her'-cu-les 






Co' -ma Be'r-e'-rii '-ces 




Le'-o 




R^g'-u-Uts 


Au-rV-ga 




Ca-peV-la 


G&m'-i-ni 




C as' -tor and PoV-lUx 


Scor'p-i-us 




Ant-d'-res 


Sa-git-td'-rius 






Cyg'-nus 




Den'-eb 


Ly-ra 




Ve'-ga 


A-quil-a 




Al-tair 


Dcl-phl'-nus 






Per'-se-us 




Al-gol 


An-drdm'-e-da 






P&g'-a-sus 






Ur'-sa Ma'-jor 






Ur'-sa Ml' -nor 




Po-la'^ris 


Dra'-co 






Cas-sio-pe'-ia 






Tau'-rus 




Al-d&b'-a-ran 
Plei'-a-des 


Pis'-cis Aus-tra' 


-lis 


Fo-mal-haiU 


O-rl'on 




Rl'-gel 
Be-td'-geuze 


Cd'-nis Ma'-jor 




Si'-ri'-u8 


Cd'-nis Ml'-nor 




Pro'-cy-on 



60 



BOOKS, PERIODICALS, CHARTS 



SECTION XVI 
FOR FURTHER OBSERVATIONS 



"A Beginner's Star -Book/' Kelvin McKready. G. P. 
Putnam's Sons. 

"A Field Book of the Stars." William T. Olcott. G. P. 
Putnam's Sons. 

4 'Astronomy with the Naked Eye." Garrett P. Serviss. 
Harper Brothers. 

"Starland." Sir Robert Ball. Ginn & Company. 

"The Monthly Evening Sky Map." Leon Barritt. 150 
Nassau St., New York City. 

"A Trip to the Moon." Pamphlet. Louise Brown. The 
Womans Press, 600 Lexington Ave., New York. 

"The Sky: Winter Nights." Pamphlet. Louise Brown. 
The Womans Press, 600 Lexington Ave., New York. 

"All Night with the Stars." Pamphlet. Louise Brown. 
The Womans Press, 600 Lexington Ave., New York. 



61 



